Castilian civil war

Poor little Maria – the sad story of a medieval princess

Medieval princesses had it tough. Rarely did they experience the joy of a loving union—Eleanor of Castile and her Edward is one of the major exceptions to that—often were they sent off to lands unknown, never to return. Yes, they were raised to do this. They were educated and buffed and polished, and many likely […]

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A life behind walls – meet Diego and Juan

Some of the sadder stories in history are about children who are caught up in the wars of their elders. Take, for example, the sad story of Manfred of Hohenstaufen’s very young children, who were locked up (and purportedly blinded) by Charles of Anjou in 1266  after he killed Manfred and claimed Sicily as his

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